Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, urged the Senate to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act through “unanimous consent,” which would make important updates to the Equal Pay Act. The Paycheck Fairness Act, introduced by Senator Murray and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), passed the House of Representatives with Democratic and Republican support last week.

On the Senate floor, Senator Murray urged her colleagues to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act to close loopholes in the Equal Pay Act, including protecting women from retaliation for discussion salary information, allowing women to join together in class-action lawsuits, and prohibiting employers from seeking salary history. Murray’s request for unanimous consent was denied.

The Equal Pay Act was signed into law more than 50 years ago, but women, on average, still only make 80 cents for every dollar white men make. The pay gap is even wider for women of color—African American women make 61 cents, Native American women are paid 58 cents, and Latinas make 53 cents for every dollar their white male colleagues make.